It’s not like I’m some nail guru, but because I technically have a nail blog (is this REALLY a nail blog??), people tend to ask me about what I do to care for my nails. I am more than happy to share what I do with my nails, but please bear in mind that this is what works for me. What works for me, may not work for you. So the following is a list of my HG products:
CND Solar Oil
This stuff is like liquid gold to me. I have tons of bottles all over the place, and I always keep one in my purse. This cuticle oil is by far the best product that I currently use on my nails and cuticles. It soaks in quickly and doesn’t leave my hands and fingers greasy like other products. If I could only keep one nail/cuticle care product, it would be this one.
Barielle Intensive Hand Treatment Cream with gloves
This Barielle hand cream is the shiznit. I try to use it every other day right when I go to bed. This cream is incredibly thick and lightly scented so it doesn’t bother me. Once I rub the cream all over my hands and fingers, I add a little bit more to my fingertips and then I slide on the gloves and go to bed. When I wake up the next morning, my hands are soooooo soft. I adore this product.
Nail-Aid
Every time I start to grow my nails, I reach for my nail-aid to help strengthen them. I am deathly afraid of those horrible breaks people get when their nails are long so I always use this as a base coat. I use the Collagen nail builder when I am trying to get my little nubs to grow faster as well. The 3 Minute Artificial is a great base or top coat, and it supposedly makes nails 11 times stronger. I can’t substantiate those claims, but my nails are definitely stronger when I wear either of these.
Sally Hansen Cuticle Removers
I honestly have not been able to find cuticle removers that are better than these two. I use both of them and don’t really have a preference. They are both manicure staples for me because my cuticles are my #1 nail problem. When I was a kid, I used to bite my nails and chew off my cuticles. You can’t even imagine how horrible my fingers and nails looked back then.
Now, for something that is a little different, I take a biotin supplement which is supposed to be good for your hair and nails. Some people will say that it makes no difference and that there’s no scientific evidence, but I know it makes a difference for me. As soon as I start taking biotin, I notice that my hair gets stronger, doesn’t fall out as much and my nails grow like crazy. For this same reason, I like to take protein powder supplements. I started drinking protein shakes when I started working with my personal trainer, and I also noticed what a huge difference it made when it came to my hair. In case you’re wondering why I’m taking about my hair so much: one of the symptoms of having PCOS is that some people experience heavy hair loss. My hair has thinned a lot over the year even though most people say they can’t tell at all. I used to have super crazy thick hair and now I don’t so I want to make sure I take care of the hair I have left! lol
Now, for my gym rant. So I started going to the gym again and I’m sad to say nothing has changed. Why do people go to the gym to stand on machines and admire themselves in the mirrors? It’s like I’m an alien in there sometimes because I go to work my ass off–literally. I sweat a lot. If you annoy me, maybe I’ll fling my sweat at you.
Look at the sweat on my t-shirt. (No, I’m not trying to pull a Flashdance with the off the shoulder thing–my tshirt is just too big. lol)Â Does this look like the sweat of a person who wants to listen to you blab with your friend or even worse, on your cell phone? I just want to throw a 5lb free weight at their faces sometimes. I have way too much rage at the gym. I guess it’s good that I’m taking it all out on the treadmill, huh?
So there you have it. These are just a few things I do for my nails. Do you have any holy grail nail products that you can’t live without? I’m always open to trying new things so please share. Talk to you later!
I’ll have to try the Braille cream next time they have a sale. Do the gloves come with it?
Yes, the gloves come with it. If you have a TJ Maxx or Marshall’s near you, I have seen the kits there for a lot less than full retail price. Last time I saw some, I stocked up! 🙂
I used to tear, pick, and chew at my cuticles too. Blogging has made me almost completely stop, I do have relapses. I figured its a bored and anxious thing I do cause I notice when I do it now and its usually when I’m in those states. My cuticles are never going to be perfect like most other bloggers I see because of the years of damage, but they’ve certainly improved by my standards.
I need to try that CND Cuticle Oil. I have a Julep roller ball cuticle oil that I like, but I hate that my fingers stay oily fora while and then I feel like everything I touch gets oily >.<
I do need to get a set of gloves as well, I always mean to but never do.
Frosso recently posted..Orly RIP
i used to go to the gym, people didnt understand why.. because I’m too skinny.. I mean, I’m size 26 and XS, I am so skinny that is difficult to find clothes that fits me (no, i’m not lucky)… so the thing is that I used to go 3 days a week, and on Wednesdays (it was my favorite day) I took 3 classes. Aerobics, Pilates and DANCING. dancing was my favorite because you needed to dance like a master, because men used to stare through the window glass.. they used to stop whatever exercise they were doing (the gym even cancelled the spinning class they had at the same hour for the lack of assistance) and watch the ladies dance.
I just want to share with you the favorite song of the guys, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ES14JAZdAA&noredirect=1
I used to go to the gym, because my husband was a member and I needed to see the competition over there.. you know, there’s a lot of women that go to the gym to look for a new husband.. or lover.. so I needed to check my competition.. LOL, the thing is that I ended loving the gym .. and the dancing lessons..
mariaemmafaria recently posted..Dayra
Ugh…the cell phone talkers! Ridiculous, right??! I also can’t stand those in the restroom at work. Or the hall at work for that matter. Especially when it’s REALLY personal. I don’t need to hear you breaking up w/ ur man & neither does anyone else.
Alright, nails first. Hmm. Not sure I have any HG products! Is this possible? Using a glass file was a pretty big help for me, and I’m fairly picky about my cuticle pusher (the one I had broke and I’ve gone through two more so far and don’t like them as much). I don’t really have a favorite remover/cuticle oil/base coat/top coat. Seche Vite, maybe, for the latter.
OK, gym. So I have also begun going to the gym. I actually kind of like this gym (for now, anyway). The cardio and the weights are kind of separated into two wings, so I can avoid the douchebag gym guys, for the most part. I feel like it’s more your “everyday” people on the cardio side, so I feel more comfortable.
However, I really didn’t want to go on Sunday, and when I did, I was annoyed beyond belief. There was a class in the room I usually stretch in, so not only could I not do that, I had to hear some chick going, “WOO!” every five seconds. Plus, the World Series was still going (don’t even get me started on how INSANE the Bay Area has become over the freaking Giants, OMG WHO CARES?), so everyone was crowded around the tvs, and I was like, JUST GO WORK OUT! Lesson to be learned: don’t put off going when you don’t want to go, because you’re making it worse for yourself.
And: high five, sista, because I sweat like crazy, too! My shirt ends up looking like that, both in terms of sweatiness and size. I’ll be running and feel it pulling over to one side, haha. I guess it’s because I wear super-old, super-baggy shit to work out in…I ain’t impressing anybody with my sweaty self!
Loved this post great info! For me it’s a question of finding the “right” gym. I think gyms have personalities!
You are so right! Unfortunately, I go to a huge chain (24hr). I can go to most of their clubs but settle for whatever is closest. I have noticed that some of their clubs are better than others so maybe I will have to branch out a bit.
I have PCOS and Inability to conceive is really tough for both the woman and the male too. I go to a fertility center and so far I have tried three or more IUIs to try and get a little one. The very first IUI was successful however I lost the baby 5 weeks in the pregnancy . And we?ve been trying ever since with no results. In January Im moving on to IVF and give that a try, I hope it does the job I was told that Shedding weight will help me to get pregnant. The problem is losing weight has normally troublesome for me, especially since I have PCOS it generally make things more tricky. So far though I lost a further 30 pounds along with another 10 to 15 pounds more before the New year happens in . Because for me personally weight loss will assist me to have a baby a baby.
Wow, you are so brave for going through all that. When I was diagnosed with PCOS, I pretty much knew that it would be very difficult if I EVER decided I wanted to have kids. The worst part was when my gyno told me “Oh, just get a Hysterectomy because your uterus is so bad that you’ll get cancer.” WHO SAYS THAT? She was definitely NOT in the running for best bedside manners. I also find that it’s harder to lose weight because of the PCOS but it is definitely something that I have to work hard on for my overall health. Thank you for sharing such a personal journey. I went to check out your blog and it has a lot of information–I hope you keep us updated on your IVF. I’ll keep you in my thoughts.
Biotin is actually somewhat proven to help though. Just thought I’d add that. I have a few pages of it in my book on how it helps and stuff BUT isn’t always guaranteed to help strengthen the nail. Helps with growth.
Supplements help more because what you put in, comes out. That’s why unhealthy people have brittle hair/nails.
My holy grails are:
White vinegar to prevent peeling polish. Yes it really works and I’d be lost without it. Everything cocks up when I don’t wipe down with vinegar.
And my Tip Top cuticle oil because I have dry hands I always use cream BUT that isn’t always sufficient for my NAILS so cuticle oil to the rescue and it’s helped my nails A LOT actually.
That’s all.
Thanks for sharing your HG nail products. I think you have gorgeous nails when you don’t cut them down to nubs. 🙂
I’ll be stopping in Sally’s today to pick up the CND Solar Oil. My cuticles are horrific which is why I rarely get manicures. Most products are so oily/greasy that I leave spots on any and everything I touch. My friend says that Neosporin is good for the cuticles, have you heard about that?
I’ve never heard about using neosporin for my cuticles. My cuticles get pretty bad when I don’t use Solar oil. Before every manicure, I squirt some cuticle oil (not solar oil but some other cheap cuticle oil) and some hand lotion and massage it into my cuticles. If I do that, my cuticles stay ok but once it gest colder, I really have to keep moisturizing all day long.